The Flying Squirrel Community Space exists because we believe that building community is an integral part of liberation. We aim to create a dynamic, artistic, free, cross-cultural space where people can come together to share resources and knowledge in order to better support one another in struggle. We want to provide a concrete example of what liberation could look like, and we plan to have fun doing it.
The Flying Squirrel Community Space opposes racism, sexism, heterosexism, and classism, along with all other oppressions, and we will actively struggle against them. These oppressions are built into the fabric of our society, and therefore, we recognize that all people have a great deal of learning and unlearning to do. We welcome people wherever they are at; at the same time, we will hold one another accountable for fighting these oppressions — both institutionally and individually.
We oppose capitalism and seek alternatives to it. By “capitalism”, we mean an economic system where those with the most wealth and resources have the most control and power over our communities and our lives. We support people owning the houses they live in, workers controlling their workplaces, and everyone having access to food, affordable housing, quality education, health care, and other basic needs.
The Flying Squirrel Community Space uses consensus process to make our decisions. Consensus process is a tool that helps empower all members to shape group decisions. Consensus aims to create a non-hierarchical, anti-authoritarian, cooperative group structure that decentralizes power and encourages collective participation and responsibility.
The Flying Squirrel Community Space is committed to caring for one another and our respective communities. We will promote the sharing of resources including knowledge, skills, and equipment.
The Flying Squirrel Community Space advocates creative, community-driven solutions to conflict. We will work to create alternatives to the prison industrial complex[1]. Whenever possible, the Flying Squirrel Community Space will use alternative justice solutions rather than relying on the police. Underlying this stance is our belief that communities are empowered when they are able to deal with their own conflicts.
Footnotes
^ “The United States uses prisons and policing as a failed "solution" to social, political and economic problems. We call this system the "prison industrial complex," or PIC. As a result our communities are being destroyed. The PIC depends upon the oppressive systems of racism, classism, sexism, and homophobia. It includes human rights violations, the death penalty, industry and labor issues, policing, courts, media, community powerlessness, the imprisonment of political prisoners, and the elimination of dissent. ” - Critical Resistance